Billboard with movable figures



19, 19 A. DELFINI EIAL 3,013,352

BILLBOARD WITH MOVABLE FIGURES Filed March 23, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.4g

INVENTOKSI A. De/fiml and R. Rea/ ATTOfLNEEjS United States Patent 3,013,352 BILLBOARD WITH MOVABLE FIGURES Alberto Delfini and Rodolfo Reali, Rome, Italy, assignors to Soc. r. l. Attrezzature e Dispositivi per Annunci Reclamistici-A.D.A.R., Rome, Italy Filed Mar. 23, 1960, Ser. No. 17,123 Claims priority, application Italy Mar. 24, 1959 1 Claim. ((Il. 40-30) composed when all strips of one series lie in sight on the same plane. In reality, this plane is not the same for all strips of any one series, but such strips lie on parallel planes spaced by the small thickness equaling the thickness of the sum of the other underlying series of strips.

In other words, one series of strips representing one of the subjects being kept stationary, all other subjects are obtained by superimposing on this series that of another subject and the passage from One subject to the next is achieved by the vertical movement of a frame on which the strips are mounted, the length of this movement being equal to the width of one strip.

These movements are obtained by a mechanical arrangement which causes the various pictures to stop for a suitably pre-arranged period of time, then passing rapidly from one subject to the next. This is achieved by means of a device comp-rising cams which cause the various frames to rise and fall, in combination with a Maltese cross device which causes the frame to move rapidly from one position to the next, such movements being alternated with stops of suitable length.

The description of the invention will be more clearly understood by referring to the enclosed table of drawings which represents, as a non-limiting example, one preferred embodiment hereof. In the table:

FIG. 1 represents, in partial View, a board according to the invention, in which the subjects are composed, for instance, of five strips;

FIG. 2 is a cross-section of the board in a position which is assumed to be the initial one;

FIG. 3 is also a cross-section of the board in any of the positions which present a subject diiferent from the initial one;

FIG. 4 is a simplified representation of the side guide bars of the frames which move vertically the series of strips;

FIG. 4a is a side view of FIG. 4;

FIG. 5 represents, in elevation and side view, the de vices which actuates the frames shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 represents the Maltese cross device used to actuate the said frames;

FIG. 7 represents the cams used for the raising and lowering of the frames;

FIG. 8 is a simplified perspective view of one of the frames.

The picture in sight (FIG. 1) consists of strips a (2 I a a and (1 which in the whole compose subject a.

A frame 10 surrounds the edges of the picture and pre- 3,013,352 Patented Dec. 19, 1961 sight. Noting that the pictures should be observed in the direction of the arrows, FIG. 2 presents strips a a a a a all in sight, and therefore placed in front of the other strips designated by letters b, c, d, e and indices 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. The series of strips not in sight, being covered by strips a, carries indices smaller than those of strips a by one unit. Moreover, since the strips are five while the positions which they can assume are six, the strips of the last bottom row (FIG. 2) are concealed by frame section 10. In any case, the strips of series a are fixed and those of the other series perform, for the composition of a new subject, a vertical excursion as long as the strip is wide.

In FIG. 3 the board is presenting subject d and the change in subject has been effected as follows: raising frame 14 from the position shown in FIG. 2 to that shown in FIG. 3, brackets or arms 16, indicated in broken lines in the said figures, engage their vertical branches between strips c e e e c raising strips d d d to the point where they cover the corresponding strips a a It should be noted that, for the sake of obtaining a clear drawing, in the graphic portrayals of FIGS 2 and 3 the spacing of the strips has been exaggerated, and the em noticeable in FIG. 2 between strips a of the same figures and in FIG. 3 between strips d" of the same figure would not be visible in practice, since the board is of considerable size and the complete thickness of the series of superimposed strips would be but a few centimeters.

According to arrangements not illustrated in the figures, each strip may be glued on the strip-holder or inserted into a rigid envelope having the front side of transparent material. FIGURES 4, 4a and 8 represent in simplified form the actuator frames, which consist of parallel and coplanar vertical rods 20, 21, 22 and 23 installed behind the board. Each of the four vertical rods 20, 21, 22 and 23 is independent of the others. These vertical rods are connected transversally each with its own corresponding rod (not shown in FIG. 4) by two series of horizontal crossr-ods, forming an upper series 20b, 21b, 22b and 23b, and a lower series 20c 230, as clearly shown in FIG. 8, which represents in perspective view also the vertical braces 20v distributed (in the number of two in the example portrayed) on the front of the board and carrying brackets 16 (not shown in FIG. 4) intended to engage their vertical members between the strips, as indicated above. Bearing in nnnd that each of the bars 20 23 with the respective crossbars 20b, 20c 23b, 230, must be free to move for a distance at least equal to the w-idth'of one strip, and being all on the same plane, the vertical distances between the various crossrods should be such as not to foul this movement, which is actuated in the manner described below.

In FIG. 4, the general index 25 is used to designate the nodes between vertical and horizontal rods which form a the first class 26-26, 27-27, 2828 and 294-29, which are pivoted in 30 and 30. Each pair of levers 26, 26' actuates one framelFIG. 7). For instance, let us assume that levers '26 and 26' actuate rods 21 and 21'. The rods, however, operate in pairs in the sense that while rods 26 and 26 are in motion, sat, downwards,

other two symmetrically disposed levers 2'7 and 27' move in the opposite direction. I The levers are caused to move in this way by the action of cams. 3-1, 32, 33 and 34 arranged on difierent planes, which act upon the articulation at the end of the lever. Cams are fixed on shaft 41 and as they rotate they present successively pictures 11, c, d, 2, while picture a remains in sight when all control levers are lowered, i.e. (FIG. 7) in the position corresponding to the missing cam in series 31, 32, 33 and 34.

The mechanical action for the succession of figures on the board is provided by a motor 38 which, by means of a Worm gear and spiral gear, drives into slow motion a shaft 39 on which is fixed a disc 42 carrying an arm to which is fixed a pin 43 which, at each revolution of shaft 39, engages one of the radial slots 44 of a five-arm Maltese cross which is fixed in turn on shaft 41.

As it is known, the Maltese cross remains in stationary position until pin 43 engages the said slot and alternates the stop phases with a fast 72 movement of cam-carrying shaft 41.

Since the above description was made for exemplification purposes only, it is understood that all other me chanical arrangements based on the same inventive concept and arriving at the same solution shall be equally protected within the scope of this patent.

What we claim is:

A mechanism for effecting sequential scene changes in a billboard, said mechanism comprising, in combination, a billboard frame, a series of fixed horizontal scene strips rmly connected to said frame in vertical offset relation, a plurality of movable scene carrying frame members, a plurality of series of horizontal scene strips, each of the last-mentioned series of horizontal scene strips being carried vertically by a separate scene carrying frame member in offset relation to a series carried by an adjacent frame member, said scene carrying frame members being movable vertically from a first position wherein said fixed scene strips are displayed to a second position wherein the second-mentioned scene strips are displayed,

each scene strip in a particular series being adapted to cover any scene strip next above when its frame member is moved upwardly to its second position; a pair of support brackets mounted on the top of said billboard frame, a plurality of articulated levers pivotally connected to each support bracket, each of said levers having ends pivotally connected to the top of a separate scene carrying frame member, each articulated lever having a joint disposed intermediate said support brackets, a shaft carried by said billboard frame, means for rotating said shaft, a disc connected to said shaft and rotatable therewith; an arm connected to said disc; a drive pin carried on said arm; a second shaft supported in said billboard frame and extending in parallel alignment with the firstmentioned shaft; a second disc rigidly connected to one end of the second-mentioned shaft, said second-mentioned disc containing a plurality of spaced radial slots, the number of said slots being equal to the number of series of scene strips, said drive pin being adapted to engage the slots of the second-mentioned disc, whereby the second-mentioned shaft rotates when the first-mentioned shaft is rotated and, a plurality of cams connected to the second-mentioned shaft, and engaging the joints of said levers for swinging said levers, whereby said frame members are reciprocated to expose the scene strips carried thereby in predetermined sequence.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 184,384 Kayser Nov. 14, 1876 2,829,456 Hatterer Apr. 8, i958 FOREIGN PATENTS 256,980 Switzerland Feb. 19, 1947 513,320 Italy Feb. 4, 1955 

